Motorists can protect their family’s safety by meeting their vehicle’s maintenance needs. While it’s easy to be car care aware, too many people are putting off simple preventative maintenance and repairs that could make their vehicles safer and more dependable.

Consumer vehicle neglect has now reached $62 billion in annual unperformed vehicle maintenance in the United States (source: MEMA). Studies have shown that unperformed maintenance results in 5 percent of all vehicle accidents, leading to more than 2,600 deaths, nearly 100,000 disabling injuries and more than $2 billion in lost wages, medical expenses and property damage each year. In addition, poor vehicle maintenance has a direct impact on the environment, with 10 percent of the nation’s automobiles causing 50 percent of the automotive pollution.

“One of the reasons for consumer vehicle neglect is a lack of awareness and knowledge,” said Rich White, executive director of the Car Care Council. “The first step to reversing unperformed maintenance is understanding what vehicle systems need to be routinely inspected and when service or repairs should be performed.”

The Car Care Council has made it easy to keep up with proper vehicle care by offering a service interval schedule as part of its “Be Car Care Aware” education campaign about the benefits of regular vehicle care, maintenance and repair.

The service interval schedule provides easy-to-follow maintenance tips for vehicle systems, including: braking, heating and cooling, electrical and ignition, emission control, fuel, and steering and suspension. Vehicle components such as tires, windshield wipers, lights and the vehicle’s body are also addressed in the schedule.